Modbook Pro gets priced at $3,500, as pre-orders begin

No one ever said a modded MacBook Pro was gonna be cheap. Last week Modbook announced that it would be going ahead with pre-orders on the Modbook Pro today, but didn't really touch on pricing. As ordering begins, the company's attached a $3,500 starting price tag for the honor of controlling your 13.3-inch Mac with a pen. The Modbook Pro, which is set to start shipping in the middle of next month, runs Mountain Lion and features a 2.5GHz Intel Core i5 processor (upgradable to a 2.9GHz i7) and memory and storage up to 16GB and 480GB, respectively. If you're aching to get your hands on one of these Frankensteinian tablets, you'll have to plunk down a $500 deposit.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (October 3, 2012) - Creative technologies developer Modbook Inc. today announced that customers with shipping addresses in the United States can place orders beginning at 2 p.m. PDT today for the Modbook® Pro, the company's innovative 13.3-inch pen tablet computer.

To create an easy one-stop shopping experience, Modbook Inc. has opened ModbookShop.com as the exclusive online source to purchase the Modbook Pro. Customers can visit http://www.modbookshop.com and use the dynamic product configurator to customize their Modbook Pro system's processor (up to 2.9GHz Intel® CoreTM i7), memory (up to 16GB) and internal storage (up to 480GB solid-state drive), as well as to build out complete single- or dual-display desktop installations, and even to get Microsoft® Windows® 7 preinstalled and configured as a primary or secondary operating system.

The manufacturer's suggested retail price of the Modbook Pro is $3,499. The Modbook Pro is scheduled to begin shipping in mid-November.

A unique computer modification product, the Modbook Pro seamlessly fuses the original hardware of a new Apple® MacBook® Pro 13.3-inch computer running OS X® Mountain Lion, a state-of-the-art Wacom® Penabled® pen tablet digitizer and an etched paper-emulating ForceGlassTM screen. Each Modbook Pro includes a fast and reliable NisharaTM-class or SansharaTM-class solid-state drive for internal storage, configurable up to 480GB.

Taken together, the Modbook Pro's power, speed, portability and highly sensitive pen input make it the ideal mobile creative workstation.

"We're excited that customers will finally get the chance to configure and purchase their Modbook Pro. Each Modbook Pro is custom built to its owner's requirements, and we're confident the time and effort dedicated to the custom build will result in a fun and productive product for customers," said Andreas E. Haas, chief executive officer and chief technology officer of Modbook Inc.

Configuring and Ordering the Modbook Pro

Orders for the Modbook Pro begin today at 2 p.m. PDT. Currently, the Modbook Pro is only available to customers with shipping addresses in the United States. To configure and order their Modbook Pro, customers should go to Modbook Inc.'s online store, ModbookShop.com. Custom configuration options for the Modbook Pro include the choice between a 2.5GHz Intel Core i5 or 2.9GHz Intel Core i7 dual-core processor, increased memory up to 16GB and select solid-state drive options with up to 480GB of internal storage. As the only OS X tablet computer of its kind, the Modbook Pro can be ordered to come preinstalled (via OS X's Boot Camp® utility) with Windows 7 as a secondary operating system, or even to boot natively into Windows 7 right out of the box. The dynamic product configurator also allows customers to build out a full desktop setup with up to two standard or Wacom® pen- enabled large-screen displays, adding a maximum of 5020 by 1600 pixels (two 2560-by-1600-pixel external displays) to the Modbook Pro's built-in 1280 by 800 pixel screen.

Order Fulfillment and Shipping

Since the Modbook Pro is custom produced and built according to each individual customer's specifications, including the purchase of a new MacBook Pro base system on the customer's behalf, a deposit payment of $500 is required with each order. Customers can cancel their order at any time prior to the beginning of the final stage in the custom build process and receive a full refund of the deposit payment. At the time the final stage of the custom build process begins (12 days prior to scheduled shipment), the deposit payment is no longer refundable and will be applied to the total amount due for the order. The balance due will be charged at that time. All orders for the Modbook Pro will ship in the order in which they are received. Shipments are scheduled to start in mid-November. By submitting an order early, customers have the assurance their place in line is secured.

Returns, Warranty and Support

Even though every Modbook Pro is a custom build-to-order product, there is a 30-day "no questions asked" return policy for all systems purchased through ModbookShop.com. A merchandise return fee of 20% is due on all returns other than for repairs or replacements (which are covered by the Modbook Pro's warranty and service plan). Other limitations apply. More detailed information on the return policy is available at http://www.modbookshop.com/customer-service. The Modbook Pro comes with a one-year Modbook Pro Protection Plan covering the complete hardware solution, including all of the components of the MacBook Pro base system.* Customers will be able to have their Modbook Pro serviced at an authorized service center, the first of which will be announced prior to the time the Modbook Pro begins shipping.